THE PEOPLE, PRAIRIES AND PLAINS POST

October 1995 No. 1

Howdy from the Director
Hello from the Heartland. I hope that all is
going well for you. I especially hope that all of you
are employing the lessons you devised! Chris and I
have heard from two of you already. Reports from
Duncan and Mary Jo are included in this edition of
the newsletter. Now, we hope to hear from the rest
of you soon. Tell us what you re doing with the
institute material, and how you re presenting it to
your colleagues. Don t be shy; write us.
I attended the Western History
Association s annual conference this October, and
gave a short presentation about the institute. I gave
this short address to the folks attending the annual
breakfast for the American Society for
Environmental History. Three of the scholars from
this summer (Donald Worster, Marty Melosi, and
Susan Flader) were in attendance at the breakfast,
and I recognized their contributions to the success of
the institute. Also at the conference was Doug Hurt.
All of the scholars noted how enjoyable the institute
was for them, and they hoped that all of you, the
participants, were able to gain something worthwhile
from them.
Dan Flores and I are working on a piece
that will eventually appear in the Magazine of
History. The piece will deal with teaching
environmental history to K-12 students. Of course,
I intend to highlight some of the curriculum
developed during the institute. I will not be able to
highlight everyones lessons, which is unfortunate.
The lessons that will be selected will be from those
covering history or social studies as the magazine
focuses exclusively on the teaching of history. More
on this as the piece is developed.
Hopefully by the publication of the next
newsletter there will be a homepage on the World
Web System for the institute. We will be attempting
to post information on this site about the institute,
which could include the curriculum you wrote, the
newsletter, posting of state and national conferences,
and just general bits and pieces from you. This
could prove a beneficial tool for you and others
interested in this area of teaching.
You ll find in this newsletter a copy of the
outside reviewer s report to NEH. He gave us all a
glowing report, and our program officer in
Washington D.C. was very pleased. Unfortunately
for us, and NEH, Michael Pratt, our program officer
at NEH, is among ninety others there who will lose
his job in December. In fact, nearly everyone in the
Division of Education will lose his/her job, and the
division will be staffed with other people who have
greater job seniority. NEH is being re-designed, but
funding for summer-teacher institutes will remain
part of its mandate. We can expect, however, that
the funding will be reduced considerably from
current levels.
Again, write to us and let us know what s
happening with you. Catch you in the next go
around. Later, JES.
Topic: An Evaluation of People,
Prairies, and Plains: The
Historical Role of People in the
Environment, Environmental
History Institute for K-12
Teachers
By: Jim Hoy, Professor of
English, Emporia State University
Date: 14 August 1995
As outside evaluator for the NEH summer
institute People, Prairies, and Plains: The Historical
Role of People in the Environment, directed by
Professor James Sherow of the Kansas State
University history faculty, I would like to make the
following comments that touch on the overall design,
the day-to-day format, the content, the personnel,
and the execution of the institute. I will also
comment on the personality of the group of
participants and on the effectiveness of the institute
in meeting its stated objectives.
I made three site visits (on July 12, July 18,
and July 31) to the institute for purposes of
observation and inquiry. As evidence of the
timeliness of the institute s subject matter and of the
quality of the guest scholars, on each occasion I
found a number of visitors in attendance: KSU
students and faculty, townspeople, and personnel
from the Kansas State Historical Society in Topeka.
I might further note that I was invariably treated
courteously and professionally by institute staff,
particularly Professor Sherow and Assistant Director
Christopher Cokinos,
both of whom seem to have made it a point to try to
create an atmosphere of just the right mix of
seriousness and casualness that would lend itself to
learning and intellectual curiosity. Another element
that contributed to this positive atmosphere was the
balanced mix of elementary and secondary teachers
divided among various disciplines--literature, history
and social sciences, science, and art.
At the time of my earliest visit participants
were still flushed with the enthusiasm that comes
with undertaking a new enterprise, and their
reactions were positive. During my second visit the
reality of hard work had begun to temper the mental
elation that resulted from the lectures by visiting
scholars and the lively discussions that followed
each presentation. At this time participants were
beginning to adjust to the regimen of writing and
study that complemented the lectures and
discussions, and some of them expressed a concern
about what they perceived to be a lack of clear
direction in the writing assignments.
My third visit occurred during the last week
of the institute, the day on which a major writing
assignment was to be turned in. As a result many
participants were showing the mental wear and tear
that naturally results from four weeks of intensive
instruction and interactive learning. Still, the
opinions expressed by the great majority with whom
I spoke were quite positive.
Invariably the greatest enthusiasm was voiced
for the number and quality of the guest speakers,
each of whom is a noted expert in the field of
environmental history. The planners are to be
commended for being able to assemble such an
august, and stimulating, array of scholars. Many of
the comments, couched in terms such as my brain
is full and we needed more time to assimilate,
reflected the pleasure of having been exposed to
wonderful speakers who imparted a wide
background of specific and general knowledge.
One participant noted that she had begun to look at
familiar things with a new eye, a comment that
clearly affirmed the effectiveness of the institute.
Participants also felt that sharing the results of their
learning, as well as sharing teaching experiences,
was a major plus of the institute. Many of them
found that the twice-a-week sessions in elementary
or secondary curriculum development subgroups
were particularly beneficial.
Participants continued to be challenged by the
writing assignments. Some expressed concern that
the development of an integrated curriculum with
environmental history was taking a back seat to
paper writing. But, as another participant noted,
perhaps the process was like having a baby: Painful
at the time, but (she hoped) ultimately rewarding as
the new birth would mature back in its home
environment. My own interpretation of the
expressions of frustration about the writing
assignments (based on a quarter century of teaching
composition) is that writing is a highly personal,
highly stressful activity and it is natural for
participants to have had this reaction. Undoubtedly,
the writing component of the institute was one of the
most difficult for many of the participants. On the
other hand, this component was also essential to the
success of the enterprise.
My observation of the participants suggested
that the group was both congenial and collegial, an
observation supported by the presenting of a
birthday cake to a participant by her fellows at lunch
on my first visit, and by the mass wearing of name
tags all bearing the name Shirley on my last visit.
(This latter stunt was a good-humored ribbing of
staff members who had not yet learned all the names
of participants; the ease of communication and
collegiality among staff and participants was
reflected by the fact that staff members had
requested Shirley nametags of their own to wear!)
Participants saw themselves as a dead serious, high
energy, hard working, motivated group.
One complaint that surfaced is indicative of
a more general problem that exists among educators,
one that transcends this particular institute--the
perceived gulf between public school faculty and
university faculty. The former feel that the latter do
not really understand the difficulties of life in the
public school trenches, that the latter exist in an
ivory tower. One hopes, however, that such vehicles
as this institute will help to bridge this gap and lead
to greater cooperation among all segments of the
educational system.
A comment on the design of the institute:
several participants noted that they would have
preferred to have had the visit to the Konza Prairie
Natural Research Area during the first rather than
the last week. As Aldo Leopold, among others, has
noted, it is important to get on the ground, to get out
into the environment and experience it first hand.
While I can certainly see using a trip to the Konza as
a fitting capstone for an institute on prairie/plains
environmental history, it does seem to me that
beginning with this experience might have given
participants a better feel for what was to come. In
fact, it might well have been interesting to both
begin and end with such a field trip; sitting in a
circle on a hillside covered with bluestem grass
would be most conducive to an insightful wrap-up
discussion of environmental history.
Finally, a few words about the effectiveness
of the institute in meeting its stated goals, which are
as follows: 1) to convey the legacy of the reciprocal
influences of a changing nature and a changing
society; 2) to engage participants in the best
scholarship of environmental history; and 3) to
provide participants with concrete suggestions for
incorporating environmental history into their own
classrooms. Both my own observation, as well as
commentary from participants, convinces me that
goals 1 and 2 were well met by the lectures of the
visiting scholars, by the discussions that followed
those lectures, by the texts provided, and by
individual study. Moreover, concerning goal 3, each
participant is developing his or her own set of lesson
plans and units that will make environmental history
an integral part of his or her teaching, and it is my
understanding that each participant will have a
complete set of all these documents. Thus I found
all three stated goals to have been met.
To sum up, I found this institute to be
highly successful, an excellent vehicle to spread,
through ripple effect, an essential awareness of
environmental history.
LIST OF BIRDS OBSERVED
ON THE FIELD TRIP TO
CHEYENNE BOTTOMSJULY 26, 1995
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Green-backed Heron
Little Blue Heron
Cattle Egret
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Black-crowned Night Heron
Yellow-crowned Night Heron
American Bittern
American White Pelican
White-faced Ibis
Canada Goose
Mallard
Northern Pintail
Blue-winged Teal
Turkey Vulture
Red-tailed Hawk
Swainson s Hawk
Northern Harrier
Prairie Falcon
Common Moorhen
American Coot
Killdeer
Lesser Yellowlegs
White-rumped Sandpiper
American Avocet
Ring-billed Gull
Franklin s Gull
Black Tern
Rock Dove
Mourning Dove
Common Nighthawk
Chimney Swift
Belted Kingfisher
Northern Flicker
Red-headed Woodpecker
Eastern Kingbird
Western Kingbird
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
Tree Swallow
Bank Swallow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Barn Swallow
Cliff Swallow
House Wren
Starling
Common Yellowthroat
Western Meadowlark
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Red-winged Blackbird
Green-tailed Grackle
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Northern Cardinal
House Sparrow
Note from Mary Jo Kleinsorge
Later this semester I plan to develop a
lesson plan on homesteaders, using lectures and the
book Sod and Stubble. Next semester I will be
using lectures and information I gathered last
summer to develop a unit on the dust bowl. I also
intend to tie in much of the information on early
cities that I learned from Marty Melosi.
Our faculty consists only of 5 other
teachers, and I have shared some of what I learned at
our monthly faculty meetings. I have made my texts
and notes available to them. The science teacher and
I plan to work together when she teaches a unit on
water and the environment later this year.
I began my 7 & 8 history class this fall by
using Dan Flores sense of place lecture as a basis
for teaching the history of our town, Martinsburg.
Since our school is celebrating its 110th year this
fall, I thought it would be interesting to tie in both
subjects.
I began the first day by having my students
work in cooperative groups to complete a
questionnaire that included questions posed by
Professor Flores. I added several that applied to our
own community. Among the questions were:
1. Name a Native American tribe that lived in this
area.
2. Name 3 subsistence techniques used by the
Native Americans.
3. Where does the water come from that you
drink?
4. When was Martinsburg founded?
5. What was its original name?
6. List 5 businesses that were in operation in
Martinsburg in the 1800 s.
7. What was the population of Martinsburg 100
years ago?
8. What is the population of Martinsburg today?
9. How many days till the next full moon?
10. Name 3 edible plants that grow wild in our
area.
11. Name 3 native trees from our area.
12. Name a naturalized tree in our area.
13. Name 5 common native birds of Missouri.
14. What is a common land form in our area?
15. Name 3 mammals once common in our area but
no longer found in MO.
16. Name 3 mammals common to our area today.
17. Name 5 common wildflowers.
18. When is the summer solstice?
19. When is the winter solstice?
20. Where does your garbage go?
21. When was St. Joseph Church built?
22. When was St. Joseph School built?
23. What order of nuns taught in our school for
nearly 100 years?
24. What is the largest nature preserve in our area?
25. Were the stars out last night?
26. Has there ever been a major
ecological or natural ecological or natural
disaster in the Martinsburg area?
27. When did your ancestors first settle in the
Martinsburg area? Where did they come from?
From this lesson, I found that my students really
did not know very much about the history of our
area. So in addition to developing lectures based on
Professor Flores talk, I also included other activities
that I hope helped them develop a sense of place.
Some of those lessons were:
28. Viewed the film Blooming Secrets from the
Missouri Department of Conservation. This
film is a good source for native flowers. I had
each student bring in dried, pressed flowers for
labeling and display.
29. I made Queen Ann s Lace jelly and had the
class sample it knowing only that it was made
from an edible wild plant. I then had them
guess what they were eating. This was a
popular lesson!
30. Viewed and discussed the films Our Wild
Inheritance and Legacy of Life from the
Missouri Department of Conservation.
31. Lectured on the general history of Missouri
(including the geology) and the specific history
of our town.
32. Instructed each student to write a family history
describing when, why, and how their family
came to settle in the area. Many found that their
ancestors settled here in the 1800 s.
33. Constructed time lines for our church and
school dating back to 1885.
34. I made posters listing local businesses present
in our town in the 1850 s, 1880 s, and 1920 s.
Then I had them work in cooperative groups to
develop posters of businesses present in 1995.
We then compared the lists. It was interesting
to learn that the blacksmith shop established in
the 1880 s is the implement dealer today--still
run by the same family.
35. Using the cooperative teaching technique
jigsaws I assigned each student the name of a
famous Missourian. They were to research this
person and teach it to their group.
This was an enjoyable unit to teach and I
think the students became much more aware of
themselves, their town, and their surroundings. One
student told me that she had never noticed the
flowers along the roadside before, but now she could
identify many of them. This unit lasted about two
and a half weeks.
QUEEN ANNE LACE JELLY
15 large flower heads
3 1/2 cups of boiling water
Place flower heads in boiling water, remove from
heat, and allow to steep for fifteen minutes. This
yields 3 cups of infusion.
3 cups of infusion
3 3/4 cups of sugar
1 box of powdered pectin
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1. Add pectin to infusion and bring to a
boil over high heat, stirring constantly.
2. Add sugar, all at once, and lemon juice,
stirring over high heat. Bring to a full rolling boil
for one minute, stirring constantly.
3. Remove from heat, skim off foam, and
pour jelly into sterile jars.
Make sure you have an expert with you don t
mistake Queen Anne s Lace for, say, hemlock or
snakeroot, both of which are poisonous!
Note from Duncan Boutwell
While Satanta is not a land where
messengers of bad news are killed, I have found
issues dealing with conservation of the environment
are best handled circumspectly. In the 20 years I
have lived here, I have found it to be considered bad
form to discuss two subjects: the ominous future of
the Ogallala aquifer and of all of us dependent on its
bounty, and the largesse of U.S. Government farm
subsidy programs. It is not received with hostility as
that which Archie Bunker once compared to
desecrating on the flag, but rather the subject is
not received at all. Another paradigm exists here:
one in which everyone deserves taxpayer money
with the possible exception of public school
teachers. As for a coming water shortage, it doesn t
exist. The agriculturists I deal with don t necessarily
believe that water follows the plow, but more than a
few have some evidence that money does.
As for specifics, I have organized all the
Institute materials on a bookshelf in the front of my
classroom. The lesson plans are readily available for
study and adaptation as I am able. And before long,
I hope to be. Our school is in the rocess of writing
curriculum for all areas including my own. What is
turning up as a very real need for students to meet
the objectives and those of the state is considerable
guided practice in reading and writing. My guess is
that many Institute materials will find their way into
cued writing, reading selections with concomitant
composition and writing exercises, and related
research projects consistent with library resources.
During the Institute I was able to find a number of
lesson plans appropriate to my purposes, and hope
to find more. Currently I am reviewing some of the
science projects to see if there is material there.
I believe that my use of materials will start small
and grow, as I can demonstrate how the materials fit
the curriculum and the mission statements. Small is
also a necessity because of the financial crunch our
school is currently in; all our budgets are frozen, we
are looking at declining enrollments, and there may
be staff reductions. It could be two years before our
curriculum is completed and we can order materials.
Until then I must make do with what I brought back.
As far as sharing my materials or ideas, that
must be small scale too. I have two colleagues in the
English department to share with. They seem
interested so far, but I need to show them that what
I have can work to their advantage and won t
dislodge the material they already have in place.
I really have nothing at present to report on
sharing with fellow teachers at any conference.
Beyond my own district, in which there is one each
elementary and secondary building, I have a well-
developed spirit of collaboration, but no insight, yet.
I look forward to later newsletters; I hope to
have better news to report then. Certainly I will take
advantage of any opportunities.
Educational Resources
The Big Book of Questions & Answers: Save the
Earth (Linda Schwartz, $18) A children s eco-
encyclopedia, featuring colorful, lively illustrations
and a unique question and answer format. Even
younger kids will be able to understand difficult
topics like global warming, acid rain, and
deforestation. They ll also learn about the
environmental impacts of their daily lives, and about
simple, practical changes they can make to help save
the planet. Available from: Publications
International, 7373 North Cicero Ave., Lincolnwood
IL 60646; (708) 676-3470.
My Earth Book (64 pgs., $11) A collection of
pictures, projects, puzzles, facts, and fun to help
children ages 6-9 learn about and care for the Earth.
Covers recycling, packaging, pollution, habitats, and
endangered species. Available from: Learning
Works, PO Box 6187, Santa Barbara CA 93160.
Take Action: An Environmental Book for Kids
World Wildlife Funds guide for kids, filled with
action ideas, including background information on
different wildlife issues, and examples on what kids
have done to help wildlife.
Biodiversity Curriculum Includes worksheets,
lesson plans, and activities, to help students learn
about biodiversity and the role parks play in
providing a place for it. ($20) Available from:
National Parks and Conservation association, (800)
NAT-PARK.
Earth Time A 10-hour environmental education
curriculum for grades 7-12. This program guides
students through a resource consumption audit of
their school campus. Students explore energy and
water conservation, pest management, chemical
product use, waste management, and recycling.
They will also examine their school s food systems
and landscape management plan. Available from:
Earth Time Project, Box 111, Ketchum ID 83340;
(208) 726-4030.
Our Only Earth: Endangered Species Provides
an integrated science, language arts, and social
science program ranging from a month of study to a
year-long process. ($20) Available from: Zephyr
Press, (602) 322-5090.
Wildlife Conservation Teacher Pacs Eleven
topics in the series, including Urban areas, Wildlife
Conflicts, and Endangered Species. Available from:
National Institute for Urban Wildlife, (304) 274-
0205.
Earthword: An Environmental Game Features
over 800 intriguing questions in challenging
multiple choice format. Covers air, water, forests,
wildlife, global warming, oceans, recycling, and
other issues. Available from Earthword Inc., 104
Church St., Keyport NJ 07735; (908) 264-3012.
($23.50)
Conservation and Environmentalism: An
Encyclopedia, ed. by Robert Paehlke, 1995.
Focusing on problems and solutions, this
authoritative reference work covers all aspects of the
environment, from the Everglades to the Himalayas,
from legislation in Australia to pollution problems in
Eastern Europe, from tropical rain forests to the
Porcupine Caribou herd of the Alaskan and
Canadian Arctic. Some of the best-known
environmental professionals from 14 countries
around the world have written original articles for
this multidisciplinary Encyclopedia, including
Norman Myers, Eugene C. Hargrove, Reed E. Noss,
Max Oelschlaeger, J. Baird Callicott, George
Sessions, M.S. Swaminathan, Gilbert F. White,
Michael E. Kraft, Michael P. Cohen, Paul Ekins, and
many others. Available from: Garland Publishing
Inc., New York and London.
Conservation Directory Annually updated
sourcebook of national and international
environmental organizations, government agencies,
and educational programs which focus on managing
natural resources. Includes a special section on the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Available
from National Wildlife Federation, 1400 16th St.
NW, Washington DC 20036; (800) 432-6564.
E for Environment: An Annotated Bibliography
of Children s Books with Environmental
Themes, by Patty Sinclair, 1992. Available from:
R.R. Bowker, 121 Chanlon Rd., New Providence NJ
07974.
The Environmental Address Book (by Michael
Levine, $17) Lists over 2,000 environmental
leaders, organizations, businesses, government
agencies, concerned celebrities, and polluters. A
valuable book full of the resources needed to make
a difference, whether you re writing to protest,
suggest, or praise. Available from : Putnam
Publishing Group, 200 Madison Ave., New York
NY 10016; (212) 951-8510.
Environmental Education Resource Guide A 19-
page booklet listing a variety of teaching media--
from curricula and newsletters to films and
magazines. Available from: Friends of the Earth,
1025 Vermont St. NW, Washington DC 20005;
(202) 544-2600.
Environmental Education Teacher Resource
Handbook Covers infusion, funding, the latest
trends, state guidelines, curriculum design, project
ideas, product reviews, curriculum guides, and more.
Available from: Kraus International Publications,
(800) 223-8323.
Environmental Sourcebook Provides information
on over 8,500 organizations, associations, library
collections, agencies, publications, and
clearinghouses, associated with the environment.
Available from Gale Research, 835 Penobscot Bldg.,
Detroit MI 48226; (800) 877-GALE.
Getting Started: Bringing Environmental
Education into Your Classroom Includes the
stories of 35 K-12 teachers, information on
organizations, curricula, funding, training
opportunities, and environmental education contacts
in each state. $13. Available from: National
Consortium for Environmental Education and
Training, (313) 998-6726.
Island Press Environmental Sourcebook A free
catalog featuring dozens of environmental books on
a variety of subjects, including ecosystems
management, biodiversity and wildlife, planning and
land use, economics and policy, environmental
thought, and much more. Many books are suitable
for high-school students. Available from Island
Press, PO Box 7 , Covelo CA 95428; (800) 828-
1302.
E: The Environmental Magazine An excellent
mainstream environmental magazine with
interesting, timely, and well-written articles on a
variety of environmental issues. Includes classifieds
on educational opportunities green products, and
fund raising resources. Published bimonthly; single
copy $4, 6 issues ($20). Available at some
bookstores, or from E: The Environmental
Magazine, PO Box 699, Mt. Morris IL 61054; (800)
967-6572.
Ranger Rick Teaches youth ages 6-12 about
wildlife, natural history, and the environment.
Subscriptions: $15. Available from: National
Wildlife Federation, 1400 16th St. NW, Washington
DC 20036-2266; (800) 432-6564.
World A magazine for youth ages 8-13. Articles
cover people, places, animals, and ecosystems
around the world. Subscriptions: $15/year.
A